“works more like poetry than like news…moves within an abstract world, reflecting the internalization of an idea rather than a direct account…[Lin’s] representation of cultural displacement is potent and powerful.” Kalila Kingford Smith, ThinkingDance 2015

“Lin’s dancers were spectacular … Home was not about dance, it was about acceptance, pride, and identity. A research project that has blossomed over time, Home shone the light on a topic we often neglect.” “HOME is poignant, full-bodied and relevant.” … Dance Journal 2015

"Abstract dance tends to raise more questions than it answers, and this is true for Faith Project/The Door. Yet it effectively uses movement to explore seeking, questioning, and worshipping." - Melissa Strong for Broad Street Review, 2018

"KYL/D’s mission includes exploring mystery and reinterpreting ancient traditions. Faith Project/The Door fulfills those goals and offers the potential to bring people together through a shared experience of dance." - Melissa Strong for Broad Street Review, 2018

"Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers showed excepts of Santuario and this meditative and thought-provoking work honoring the victims of the Pulse Nightclub shootings, premiered last spring and continues to become more eloquent and polished as it deals with very weighty social themes. Lin’s vivid choreographic artistry is both elegiac and a powerful dance polemic." - Lew Whittington for the Dance Journal, 2017

"Lin’s imagery doesn’t dwell on the carnage that occurred, but it doesn’t back away from it either. Lin’s final passage is a stirring movement elegy, as their bodies entwine over the stage, suggest passage, metaphysical dignity of the body" - Lew Whittington for the Dance Journal, 2017

"While all the works had deep, even wrenching emotional meanings that evoked various audience reactions, Kun-Yang Lin’s Santuario, his elegiac dance poem to the 49 dead and 58 wounded victims of last year’s Pulse nightclub murders in Orlando, made me weep." - Merilyn Jackson for Broad Street Review, 2017

“Choreographer Kun-Yang Lin’s contemporary ballet “Santuario” is a stunning artistic response to the Pulse Nightclub shootings in Orlando, Florida last June. It is a profoundly moving dance elegy in honor of the 49 people who lost their lives on that horrific night.” - Lew Whittington for HuffPost, 2017

“The cast of 10 performed handled this emotionally challenging ballet with soulful artistry that fully embodies the artistry and depth of Lin’s choreography.”(referring to Santuario) - Lew Whittington for HuffPost, 2017

“...the audience remained on their feet in tears of appreciation for this stirring, eloquent and vital contemporary dance piece.” (referring to Santuario) - Lew Whittington for HuffPost, 2017

“The two compelling pieces in Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers’ current appearance, Sanctuary, challenge us with their message and compel us to give them a voice.” - Camille Bacon-Smith for Broad Street Review, 2017

“...a piece that explored the competitive nature of politics as a game of chess that, like war, both reveals and obscures our common humanity.” - (referring to ONE- Immortal Game) Camille Bacon-Smith for Broad Street Review, 2017

“I loved the forceful style of this dance, which combined Chinese and Western technique. The dancers’ extensions were an in-your-face challenge, with legs like battle swords, flexible but steely. Even the frozen poses hummed with contained power.”(referring to ONE-Immortal Game) - Camille Bacon-Smith for Broad Street Review, 2017

“As the title implies, what is offered inside the theater is a sanctuary for those who carry pain, struggle, or need a safe space to express and share those feelings with someone who understands and embraces them.” - Eri Yoneda for Phindie, 2017

“Lin’s choreography is a bridge between East and West. While the movements show elements of modern ballet, each movement is based on the method of T’ai-chi. The unique breathing methods of eastern medicine and martial arts are introduced in his dance style, which let the dancers and the viewers feel qi—energy—around and inside the dancers.”(referring to ONE- Immortal Game)- Eri Yoneda for Phindie, 2017

“Lin provides a strong message with three beautiful duets”(referring to Santuario)- Eri Yoneda for Phindie, 2017

“The dance is painful and hard to watch, as it is intended to be. It exposes viewers to the violence, pain, and sorrow minorities are exposed to, and which viewers might never experience otherwise.”(referring to Santuario) - Eri Yoneda for Phindie, 2017

“KYL/D’s SANCTUARY is one of those art pieces that has the power to start discussions on those issues we may miss or not pay attention to in our busy everyday life, in the safe sanctuary—the theater—where we are allowed to share moments and opinions.”(referring to Santuario) - Eri Yoneda for Phindie, 2017

“The dancing is exquisite” - Kat Richter for the Dance Journal, 2017

“We’re reminded not just of the people but of the relationships that died that night.”(referring to Santuario) - Kat Richter for the Dance Journal, 2017

“Lin’s work, or at least what I’ve seen of it, always has a spiritual component. There’s usually something political too, but here the oft-used term “offering” is more apt than usual: Lin and his dancers are giving their audiences something, and on Thursday night, that something was hope.” - Kat Richter for the Dance Journal, 2017

“...as the company bows... I can’t help but feel a little better about the state of the world. Love will triumph with artists like Kun-Yang Lin adding dance to the arsenal of the resistance.” - Kat Richter for the Dance Journal, 2017

"[SANTUARIO] shocked me back into a clear, recurring realization of how dancing serves, perhaps uniquely, to buoy and nurture humanity in the face of tragedy...reminded me of how dance is transformative." Kimerer LaMothe for Psychology Today, 2017

"Because of the dancing in SANTUARIO, the devastation of the Pulse shooting registers at a sensory level. It is felt viscerally. The victim is me. The shooter is me. The ache is greater. But so too is the joy. The joy is never abstract. The joy is never absent. It is forever coursing through moving bodily selves and felt as a rousing affirmation of life by those in the Audience who bear witness to it." Kimerer LaMothe for Psychology Today, 2017

"In SANTUARIO, pain and joy, despair and celebration erupt simultaneously in such a way that the pain expands, softens and becomes more pliant; the joy radiates, and grows more resilient. New insights and options for response emerge." Kimerer LaMothe for Psychology Today, 2017

"Kun-Yang Ling/Dancers is one company on the dance map in The City of Brotherly Love that continues to push artistic boundaries." - Gregory King for the Dance Enthusiast, 2016

"Performing gestures at a relaxed pace, the two live bodies and the two shadows produced quartet. Visually striking, the image spoke to how one can be transported by Lin’s choreography." - Gregory King for the Dance Enthusiast, 2016

“Autumn Skin featured a variety of partner and group work that never left the audience bored.” - Chelsey Hamilton for Dance Journal, 2016

“Kun-Yang Lin’s home season at the Prince on Saturday, April 16th marked a new revitalized spirit for both the company and its choreographer. While the program highlighted three premieres, the company members and Mr. Lin enthusiastically signaled not only a sense of renewal, but also an excitement of moving forward in to new territory in their exploration of movement.” - Steven Weisz for Dance Journal, 2016

“With the premiere of Moment/s, we are literally taken on a whirlwind of fleeting moments in our everyday existence, challenging our very notions of time, space, relationships, tension, stillness and discovery.” - Steven Weisz for Dance Journal, 2016

“As with most choreographers, no work is ever truly finished, but this re-make of what was already a very powerful piece was simply superb.” - Steven Weisz on Autumn Skin for the Dance Journal, 2016

“Every action has a reaction; and we all share an interconnectedness that transcends our own physicality. In each of our actions, we affect our environment and those who surround us both seen and unseen. With Autumn Skin, Mr. Lin literally peels back the layers, allowing us to examine our own existence and its affect on others, and from the chaos find new meaning, perhaps just as he has done with his own company.” - Steven Weisz for Dance Journal, 2016

“a moving, compelling look at the immigrant experience…a timely piece…leaves us with a sense of mystery and connection.” Naomi Orwin for Dance-Enthusiast NYC, 2015

“works more like poetry than like news…moves within an abstract world, reflecting the internalization of an idea rather than a direct account…[Lin’s] representation of cultural displacement is potent and powerful.” - Kalila Kingford Smith for ThinkingDance, 2015

“Lin’s dancers were spectacular … Home was not about dance, it was about acceptance, pride, and identity. A research project that has blossomed over time, Home shone the light on a topic we often neglect.” “HOME is poignant, full-bodied and relevant.” … Dance Journal, 2015

"Lin's dancers are amazing as an ensemble, they are also striking individuals" --The Daily Gazett, 2014

"Choreographer Kun-Yang Lin is a skillful dance maker. His works, as seen through his Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers at the Egg on Friday night, both soothe viewers into a meditative state while at the same time alerting them to an inherent but unspoken drama. His nine dancers cluster and sweep across the stage in precise unison, often with movements that are stark and sudden. A jerk of the elbow up, a fall to the floor or a bob of the head happen in ways that surprise and intrigue. Lin's dancers are a finely tuned unit." ---The Daily Gazett, 2014

"Kun-Yang's integration of varying choreographic dynamics created a multifaceted and complex piece that elicited a powerful emotional response in the audience members, myself included."---Concordiensis Newspaper, 2014

"provoked a profound emotional, spiritual and mental journey. His choreography and performance presentation were effective in their ability to move the audience and forge a powerful connection between the audience members and his company's art."---Concordiensis Newspaper, 2014

"Be/Longing: Light/Shadow," which further explores Lin's interest in humanity's quest for integration -- mind, soul and body -- with the rest of humankind. His is a noble endeavor, indeed. ---The Daily Gazett, 2014

"Kun-Yang Lin doesn't choreograph dances as much as meditations in motion. Each of the five works on his company's program at The Egg Friday evening was infused with presence, mindfulness and a deep sense of quietude. " ---Times Union, 2014

"The powerful ensemble work "A-U-M," from 2009, is named for the mantra that's often referred to as the universal sound, or the vibration of the universe. The piece is set to a hypnotic repeated chant of that single sound, providing a backdrop for the changing geometric formations on stage. At one point, a dancer calls out "Still!" and then, a bit later, "Go!"-putting words to the conscious pauses between movement. The dancers bring the audience into the meditation, too, taking a few moments midway through to offer a guided body- and breath-awareness exercise. "---Times union, 2014

""Be/Longing: Light/Shadow" combines forceful, fast choreography with frozen tableaux. Moving as one, and then as individuals within the community, the dancers slide smoothly into new shapes and arrangements every few seconds. The speed and energy rise and fall like the rhythm of the breath. Fittingly, the piece ends in stillness and silence-yet still vibrating with life. " ---Times Union, 2014

"…what sets Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers apart is their emphasis on humanity and connection to the audience."---- Off-Stage Philly, 2014

"The dance took over…It was seamless, endless. Stillness and movement, light and shadow. Finally, we, too, became part of the dance, arms reaching, connecting heart to heart, audience and performers as one." ---- Off-Stage Philly, 2014

"…it is particularly successful in synthesizing both ethnographic and somatic strands of research - and in turn the results of this research into a stunning display of technique and artistry that transports the audience into another place, and ultimately into themselves." -- Dance Journal, 2014

"…it is clear that Lin's work is an act of selflessness, an act of love. The dance - even as beautiful, unexpected and breathtaking as it is - is just a medium of communication and we are all invited to take part in the conversation." -- Dance Journal, 2014

"Lin's world traveling company…is one of its best since the troupe relocated from New York in 2008. Known for choreography embracing solemnity and Eastern spirituality, Lin draws dancers who tap into a reverence for humanity while exemplifying excellent modern technique and ensemble dancing." --- Philadelphia Inquirer, Nov. 2014

"If there's such a thing as quiet-ly taking the city by storm, then that's what Kun-Yang Lin's done in Philadelphia. The man is highly spiritual, and that trait seeps into his expressive dance works, many of which are of a poetic, soulful quality. In both his life and art, Lin strives for a sense of connection and he's handily achieved that on the local dance scene, where his company's shows frequently sell out. KYL/D's upcoming production Be/Longing: Light/Shadow, inspired by poet and philosopher Rumi and created in collaboration with mandala artist Tatiana Arias, master puppeteer HuaHua Zhang and award-wining composer Cory Neale, is already generating big buzz." ---- CITY Paper, 2014

"although the work required strong, grounded technique, their technical proficiency alone was not what made this company stand out. It was rather that each dancer in each piece was able to create an invitational entryway into Lin's poetic dance vision." - OpEdgy Arts & Performance, 2013

"While the works were rich and engaging for their abstract movement design, each also hinted at something particular within the realm of human existence" - OpEdgy Arts & Performance, 2013

"The athletic and sensuous movements of the Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers are an impressive visual treat, but with this particular configuration, the language of their expression also overlaps with the worlds of mathematics, struggle, community and oneness..." - Knight Arts Foundation, 2013

"One was a true gift: smart choreography and an impassioned, athletic execution by a truly talented group of dancers." - Dance Journal, 2013

"... beautiful, stunning and evocative... Our need to connect and transcend is still ever present. What Kun-Yang does so well as a choreographer, artist and individual, is allow us through his artistry to view this need, making Beyond the Bones not only so moving spiritually but timeless as well." - Dance Journal, 2012

"Lin's evocation of that public grief stays with me as I watch the 70-minute piece... This moment of vulnerability is when I realize what grieving with others might look like - nakedness." - thINKingDANCE, 2012

"If you attended the Painted Bride Art Center this past weekend, you could have been reborn... the acclaimed Philadelphia dance company Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers graced the stage at the Bride for an evocative performance that drew audience members into a physical and primal world, but one, which also hearkened to a very human spirituality and sense of unity." - Knight foundation - Witnessing the Transformational Power of the Arts, 2012

"The six dancers in Lin's "Autumn Skin," first on Saturday's program, are clearly a family of sorts... They move in unison, or separately yet sharing phrases and intentions, and when they are isolated, they despair. The choreography is expansive and expressive, permeated with a sense of longing. The dancers' raw physicality almost approaches awkwardness, as in duets in which they seem to be trying to break down the barriers between them to achieve the connection they yearn for." - The Times Union, Albany, 2011

"Stravinsky's own Renard, winningly choreographed by Kun-Yang Lin, who matched Stravinsky's propulsive music with various mutations of martial arts." - Philadelphia Inquire Classical Music Critic, David Patrick Stearns, 2011

"Stravinsky's RAGTIME, RENARD... Each piece was given smooth, quirky, stylish choreography by Kun-Yang Lin that reflected the jazz influence of the music as well as the surrealism of much of the art of the time, and was danced with excellent skill and acting by the players. (They trumped the performance of Pulcinella with the Pennsylvania Ballet that opened the festival). Both stagings suited the music to the "T", and from where we sat in the audience, at tables on the floor of the Perelman Theatre, we were thrown right into the informal cafe influence of Paris in the early 20th century... (singers) and the dancers (Scott McPhetters, Elrey C. Belmonti, Jessica Warchal-King, Jennifer Rose, Olive Prince and Wen-Chen Liu) did a fine job indeed." - IVA records , Five line dancers Blog, 2011

"... Lin is all about connecting with the community. Clearly, his message is resonating. His company packed the house at the Painted Bride the end of last week, for three nights straight... Friday night's crowd sat rapt throughout, and who could blame them? The program's three pieces were intricately crafted on all counts - choreography, costumes, lighting and music... Lin's works are artistic adventures that captivate on many levels. Much of the movement and music draws on group ritual and meditative states of consciousness. The collective energy emanates around the room, and if you let yourself go with his flow, you don't just watch it - you feel it, too." - The Philadelphia City Paper, 2011

"Mandala Project: Return to the Circle... a gorgeous tableau..framing unexpected bodyscapes... Kun-Yang Lin swooped into the ring, red fabric swirling for a solo, with gorgeous calligraphic hand dances and Tantric poses. Lin's choreographic metaphysics has agitated idioms from martial arts and modern vocabulary mixed with the stillness of meditation and multi-Eastern classicism... the conviction of the dancers and sense of artistic journey is hypnotic." - Ballet.co.uk/Magazine, 2011

"'The Land of Lost Content' is both movement meditation and narrative... Lin's tight unison work and arresting group stage pictures build in intensity, then to cathartic resolve" - Ballet.Co.UK/Magazine, 2011

"Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers represented the City of Brotherly Love well..., he showed obvious Asian influences from various martial arts. Alternating between the aggressive and the meditative, there was always a deep inner beauty to the rhythmic structure..." - http://pittsburghcrosscurrents.com, 2010

"The marriage of Eastern influences and Western contemporary dance lends an organic aesthetic to the movement style of the company. 'AUTUMN SKIN: Journey of East/West' demonstrated the company's versatility, technical proficiency, and capability of producing choreography both poignant and culturally relevant..." - The South Philly Review, 2010

"Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers opened their second engagement at the Painted Bride Thursday night, once again to a sellout crowd. Not surprising as this small company, in just a few years since its move from New York, is at the pinnacle of Philadelphia's outstanding dance community." - Philadelphia Inquirer, 2010

"calming yet invigorating show....fierce dancers" "the packed house had staffers scrambling to add two full rows to the 200-plus seats." - Philadelphia Inquirer, 2009

"The internationally acclaimed New York based company now re-established in Philadelphia...virtuosic artistry...hypnotic energy field for the dancers and, eventually, the audience." - Ballet.Co.UK/Magazines, 2009

"...his distinctive blend of traditional and Western dance has the dark, bold force of a woodcut print.” - New York Times, 2007

"Quiet pleasure of wull-made art [Lin has the] eye for plotting and handsome thematic symmetry...” - New York Times, 2007

“… his gift for moving his dancers fluidly and concisely through sculptural individual body shaped and massed groups.” - New York Times, 2007

“Mr. Lin’s dances, simultaneously abstract and specific, create and inhabit worlds of their own, informed by that empty fullness.” - New York Times, 2007

"Lin employs a highly personalized movement vocabulary that, with its hint of Eastern flavor, is powerful and richly communicative." - World Journal, 2006

"His choreography is multi-faceted and extraordinarily impactful - even after the curtain falls, the viewer remains ensnared." - World Journal, 2006

"Choreographer Kun-Yang Lin wades deftly "Upstream" - He is an artist of profound concentration and intensity. He also delves into the connection between man and nature. And finally, he's not afraid to expose raw emotion." - The Daily Gazette, Tivoli, 2005

"Kun-Yang Lin is an artist for the masses. His work, even when indefinable, is incredibly captivating for audiences and dancers alike." - The Martha's Vineyard Times, 2004

"(KYL/D) with deliciously exotic spices blended into the stewpot of today's modern dance. " - Sun-Sentinel, South Florida, 2004

Guanyin - "unfolded in a deep persimmon glow -This beautiful work by internationally active Kun-Yang Lin, now teaching at Temple, enriched its Chinese references with suggestions of Indian dance and Egyptian friezes, knowing placements of hands and feet, and moments of surprise." - Miriam Seidel, The Philadelphia Inquirer, 2004

"Compassion-a duet set against the sound of Tibetan chants, the two dancers moved their arms and legs in graceful coordination as they moved in and out of series of intertwined postures. The movements had a spiritual overtone, reminiscent of thanka paintings of deities and consorts. The duo moved with a striking poise, strength, and confidence; the performance was a fusion of power and grace, a ritual where the sacred and profane intersect. " - The Martha's Vineyard Times, 2004

Choreography

"Kun-Yang Lin's choreography is a true expression of his personality, full of rich, delicate feeling and unique vision." -- Times Weekly, March 1992

"Kun-Yang Lin offered a unique look into the combined qualities of eastern and western dance in his choreography." - Wendy Arnell Brophy, The Martha's Vineyard Times, May 1996

"Kun-Yang Lin is a young Taiwanese choreographer with strong American modern dance roots. (His) New York debut at the Cunningham studio were notable for their craft and sturdy spirituality." - Jennifer Dunning, June 1997

Moon Dance - "In complete darkness the rapid pounding of feet is heard. When the lights go up we see Mr. Lin as a priest or acolyte of an ancient culture, in alternating movement of turbulence and lyricism, performing a dance in supplication to a heavenly body. Some gestures brought reminiscences of Oriental and Balinese forms, as well as of contemporary dance." - Jennie Schulman, Back Stage, Sept. 1997

An evening of works of Kun-Yang Lin - "Kun-Yang Lin's brilliant work fertilizes the Taiwan's modern dance, which has been waiting for an evolution for a long time. The Yin and Yang balanced perfectly in Lin's work that brings a whole new vision to us." - Taiwan Ming -Shen Daily News, Jan. 1998

"Kun-Yang Lin, an up-and-comer." - Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, March 2000

From the Land of Lost Content - "The triumph of the evening and one of the more seamlessly and powerfully executed dances I've seen was choreographed by Kun-Yang Lin. A cohesive and powerful work." - Myrna Patterson, Vineyard Gazette, July 2000

From the Land of Lost Content - "Powerful simplicity" - Jennifer Dunning, August, The New York Times

Butterfly - "Leslie Smolen Wuebben adroitly danced the role of a butterfly with broken wing by fluttering, jittering and trembling within Lin's choreography that seemed to hark back to the days of Isadora Duncan." - Steve Sucato, The Buffalo News, Oct 2000

From the Land of Lost Content - "Brilliantly constructed... Musical accents are skillfully used. Lin combines a fresh approach to conventional craft with a commitment to contemporary social-consciousness." - Lisa Jo Sagolla, Back Stage, Dec. 2000

From the Land of Lost Content - "A post-postmodernist dance; This New York premiere built and pulled one in; it was effective and affective." - Francis Mason, Ballet Review, Dec. 2000

From the Land of Lost Content - "Deeply spiritual, remarkable." - Lynn Garafola, Dance Magazine, March 2001

"With his outstanding, tango-inspired Shall We..? His work engaged us into why we dance, and had us laughing as we questioned the logic of all we saw and heard. What more can we ask from a choreographer? May many more contemporary dance-makers provoke us likewise in 2002." - Lisa Jo Sagolla, Back Stage, Jan. 2002

Butterfly - "A little Isadora Duncan and a little Butoh... this was choreography and performing that was simultaneously both lush and spare" - Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, April 2002

Dedication - "The solo is a nuanced distillation of sorrow" - Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, April 2002

"An extraordinary dancer, whose blend of tautness and buoyancy is not only exciting but also suggestive of clarity and immediacy with which dance can communicate deep, conflicting emotions." - Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, April 2002

Beyond the Bones - "transports us back to the beginnings of humanity and deep into the wellsprings of our beings. We feel we've learned everything we need to know about who and why we are." - Lisa Jo Sagolla, Back Stage, Aug. 2003

"Rapturous and full bodied performance." - Deborah Jowitt, Village Voice, April 1995

"Lin drew me in and personalized it (Liberal Me) so that it could reach everyone... (and) gave us his 100%" -Valerie Szurdak, Casting Magazine, Spring 1995

In Anthony's Requiem, "Kun-Yang Lin sketches a range of emotions, from anguish to elation. He is not, in anyway, emoting. Rather the feelings seem to burst from his body, radiating out from movement wielded with strength, singleness of purpose, and fluent precision" - Ann Tobias, Danceview, Summer 1995

"Mr. Lin is a master of form and balance." - Jennie Schulman, Back Stage, Sep 1997

Janis Brenner's What about Bob - "a loving duet for two men, Luis Tentindo and the glowing Kun-Yang Lin... look as natural as breathing." - Deborah Jowitt, Village Voice, June 1998

Brenner's What about Bob - "impressive side-by-side unison work by Tentindo and Kun-Yang Lin." - Lisa Jo Sagolla, Back Stage, July 1998

"Stunning dancer" - Christopher Cook, Vice Magazine, November 1998

In Kun-Yang Lin's Rose Garden - "Lin possesses a dazzling combination of strengths, a gut sense of how to convert steps into emotion without forsaking technique that's mesmerizing to watch." - Nicole Peradotto, The Buffalo News, February 1999

In Brenner's The L Word - "Ms. Blum and Mr. Lin have the kind of expressive face that is rare in dance today." - Jennifer Dunning, The New York Times, April 2000

"Exquisite" - The village Voice, April 2000

In Lin's Poem of Arbos - "Both Lin and (Adam) Klotz display great musicality and physical energy. There is emotion between the two dancers that unfolds with the movement." - Amy Rumizen Cohen, The Buffalo News, July 2000